Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1248: Strategy Against Persia (2)

Plintors continued, "According to recent intelligence, the King of Persia has failed to honor his promises. Therefore, those city-states harbor deep grievances, and it is highly likely they will support the Greek expeditionary army when it fights in Asia Minor."

"Over twenty years ago, Agesilaus led the Spartan Coalition—composed mostly of mercenaries—on a campaign across western Asia Minor, holding the upper hand for a long time. Today, the situation across all of Asia Minor is even more favorable to the kingdom. With our legions at the core of our allied forces, an invasion of Asia Minor would be absolutely unstoppable—"

"Wait, I see a problem here," Bagulas interrupted. "I have studied the maps of Persia. Asia Minor is a vast territory, mostly mountainous. Even if we hold the advantage initially, food supply will become a massive problem as the army pushes east. The overland supply lines would stretch too far, and if we transport supplies by sea—"

"The Persians won't just sit back and watch. They possess a powerful fleet of their own. They will undoubtedly attack our transport ships and sever our maritime supply lines. If that happens, our army will be trapped..."

"Lord Bagulas is absolutely right!" Plintors replied, his expression grave. "But the invasion of Asia Minor is only the first step in our military plan. The second, and most crucial step, is to defeat and annihilate the Persian Fleet!"

"The kingdom and Persia are thousands of miles apart, separated by the vast expanse of the Eastern Mediterranean. If we want our grand army to fight on Persian soil without being paralyzed by logistical issues, we must seize control of the Eastern Mediterranean—especially dominance over Persian waters.

"Therefore, we must assemble the First, Second, Third, and Fourth Fleets, integrating our allies' warships to forge one massive Combined Fleet stationed at Piraeus or Pherae Port. The moment the Persian Fleet sails west into the Aegean Sea Region to attack the transport ships supplying the Greek expeditionary army in Asia Minor, our Combined Fleet will strike. We will force a decisive battle. Once the Persian Fleet is crushed, our Combined Fleet can ride that momentum eastward—"

Haca coughed loudly, cutting Plintors off. He asked in a slow, deliberate tone, "The Persian Fleet is just as powerful. Tell me, Lord Plintors, why is the Ministry of Military Affairs so confident that our fleet can defeat them?"

Plintors answered with absolute confidence. "Your Majesty! My lords! The Ministry of Military Affairs has run countless analyses and wargames. We have concluded that in a war against Persia, Daionia holds absolute superiority—not on land, but at sea!"

Plintors answered with absolute certainty. "Persia's core territory lies inland. They have never been a seafaring people. Their fleet is a patchwork force, cobbled together from warships and crews provided by Phoenicia, Cyprus, Syria, Asia Minor, and the coastal Greek city-states within Persian borders. Because their origins are so fractured, with massive linguistic and cultural divides, molding them into a unified naval force willing to fight to the death and obey every command is incredibly difficult. That is exactly why the Athenian-led Greek fleets of the past, despite being vastly outnumbered, consistently defeated them. Our fleet, however, strictly adheres to Military Law. We undergo relentless training, deploy flexible tactics, and fight fiercely. Our combat strength far exceeds that of any Greek city-states' fleet.

"Secondly, the Persian Fleet has barely fought a major battle in decades. They severely lack real naval combat experience. In that regard, they cannot hold a candle to our forces. Moreover, the core of the Persian Fleet relies on the Phoenicians—"

Plintors glanced at Haca, who was deep in thought, and continued. "Over a decade ago, we clashed with the Phoenician Fleet. The armada that sailed to Carthage's rescue was almost completely wiped out. Our intelligence shows that the Persian Fleet learned nothing from that devastating defeat. Over the past decade, their naval tactics have remained entirely stagnant, and their warships have seen little to no improvement.

"In stark contrast, our fleets have spent the past several years training specifically with Persia as our hypothetical enemy. We have also collaborated closely with the Theonia Akademia and our shipyards to upgrade our warships. If both sides field a roughly equal number of ships, our thoroughly prepared navy holds an absolute advantage!

"Our only disadvantage is the distance to the Persian Fleet's main anchorages. That is why we must rely on the Greek expeditionary army's offensive in western Asia Minor to lure the Persian Fleet out into the Aegean Sea Region. Once they are there, we will utterly destroy them!"

Plintors swung his fist, his voice rising with passion. "Once victorious, our fleet can seize the opportunity while the Persian navy is crippled to push further east. We can either use our ally, Egypt, as a temporary naval base, or rely on Egyptian support to conquer Cyprus Island, effectively blockading the coasts of Syria and Carthage. This makes Egypt vital to our strategy. We must cultivate their friendship and ensure their internal stability remains intact.

"Once we control the Eastern Mediterranean, the kingdom can confidently dispatch a massive army of over a dozen legions to sail east. They can dock in Egypt or land in Canaan, conquer Phoenicia and Syria, march into Mesopotamia, and strike directly at Babylon...

"If the Persian army is still bogged down in Asia Minor fighting the Greek expeditionary army, they won't even have time to fall back and defend their capital. Even if the main Persian army hasn't been deployed to Asia Minor and manages to intercept us in time, they would still have to worry about the Greek expeditionary army sweeping down from the north to strike their rear. Caught in a pincer attack alongside the kingdom's main forces, and facing our surging morale in such a dire position, the Persian army would stand absolutely no chance of victory—"

"The Persians might refuse a pitched battle and choose to hunker down in Babylon instead," Asistes warned. "I have heard Babylon is a massive metropolis with exceptionally towering and sturdy walls, further protected by the wide Euphrates river as a natural barrier. It is absolutely not a city that can be taken quickly. If the siege drags on too long, our food and supplies will run dangerously low. The Persians would have time to recover, causing the tides of war to turn against us."

"You make a fair point, Lord Asistes. If Persia adopts a purely defensive strategy, it will indeed cause us significant trouble." Plintors offered a tactful nod before abruptly shifting his tone. "However, it will cause exponentially more trouble for Persia. While Persia is a massive empire with vast territories, it completely lacks the kingdom's ability to firmly govern its domains. Their rule is fragile. Many regions are left to govern themselves through local tribes. That is why we saw Egypt break away in independence, followed by the Ducetians inciting riots, and now the rebellions in Asia Minor... Artaxerxes has failed to suppress these uprisings effectively. His prestige has plummeted, leaving the nobility and the commoners with little faith in his rule.

"Once our forces march into the Mesopotamian Plain—the very heartland of Persia—if the Persian army simply cowers behind their high walls and helplessly watches us torch their villages and raze their farmlands, the local populace will completely lose hope in Artaxerxes. That would undoubtedly spark fresh rebellions and further splinter the empire. His only choice to win back the trust of the Persian people will be to rally a massive army and drive us out. Therefore, I firmly believe a decisive battle is inevitable!"

After Plintors finished outlining the Ministry of Military Affairs' grand strategy, silence fell over the great hall. The ministers exchanged quiet, meaningful glances, but no one stepped forward to speak.

After a long moment, Davos broke the silence. "Crotokatax, what do you make of the Ministry of Military Affairs' strategy?"

Years ago, during the campaigns on the Greek Mainland, Plintors had actively assisted Crotokatax in ultimately securing victory. The two had forged a strong friendship then, and they frequently visited each other after returning to Thurii. Yet now, the kingdom's consul merely spared Plintors a brief glance before turning to face his father. He spoke with absolute candor. "Your Majesty, the strategy laid out by the Ministry of Military Affairs sounds perfectly sound in theory. We hold a massive advantage over Persia, and if executed exactly as planned, victory seems well within our grasp. However—marching an army to fight thousands of miles away carries immense inherent risks. Everything from transporting rations to relaying messages will face exponentially greater difficulties than we have ever encountered. Furthermore, we would be invading a sprawling empire. To our generals and soldiers alike, it is completely foreign territory fraught with complex politics. Unforeseen disasters could strike at any moment.

"Just look at the Greek War. Initially, we aimed to avoid provoking the various city-states of the Greek Mainland into becoming united against a common enemy. Our plan was to dismantle Sparta first, conquering the dominant powers one by one until we controlled all of Greece. Instead, the Greek city-states rapidly banded together, forming the Greek League to oppose us. We were forced to funnel more and more troops into the grinder, rapidly escalating the scale of the conflict.

"The only reason the kingdom was able to pivot our strategy in time and make the right countermoves was because Greece is practically on our doorstep. But Persia is simply too far away. By the time a dispatch reaches us and we sit down to deliberate a contingency plan, our forces deep within Persian territory could already be facing entirely new crises—or outright defeat. And if they fail, they face the risk of total annihilation. Therefore, I believe any military action against Persia demands extreme caution!

"Furthermore, while the political landscape within the kingdom is relatively stable right now, as Lord Haca pointed out earlier, the Transalpine Gauls in the north continue to menace our borders. Indigenous tribes in northern Iberia are constantly raiding our southern territories, and the mountain tribes along the eastern shores of the Adriatic Sea remain a lingering threat to the safety of our Thessaly Region and our Greek allies...

"There are still far too many volatile threats lurking within our own sphere of influence. To put it another way, there is still an abundance of untamed land right on the kingdom's doorstep that must be conquered to guarantee lasting peace for the citizens of the Sacred Kingdom of Daunia. We must focus our energy on securing our own backyard first. We should not be seduced by the wealth of Persia, abandoning immediate priorities to chase distant ambitions.

"Even if we were to shatter the Persian army, subjugating its people and integrating them into the kingdom would be a monumental task. They are a powerful civilization, vastly different from our own, bearing a history and culture that has absolutely nothing in common with ours. They will never submit willingly to our rule. We would bleed immense amounts of manpower and resources just to maintain a fragile grip on Persia. Is it truly worth the cost? Ultimately, the foundation of the Sacred Kingdom of Daunia rests in the western Mediterranean. It rests in Italy—"